Fishing for Inspiration

Aesop Rock's cure for writer's block includes a comic book collabo

Writer's block's a bitch. But the effect is twice as evil if you do most of your work alone (solo artists, graphic designers, freelance writers; we've all felt it). When the pool of ideas is bone-dry, you've just got to ride out that drought until your head stops bugging  or you can join forces with another artistic instigator, bond over grease sandwiches, and accentuate each other's talents. Sometime South Floridian Aesop Rock (he's recently put down roots in the San Francisco Bay area) and Jeremy Fish went the latter route, when mutual appreciation led the two into each other's creative sphere. "We were going to make a documentary about the world's greatest patty melt," jokes Fish, "but we got sick from the ones we had late at night." Instead they paired up for The Next Best Thing: A Short Story About the Creative Process, a seven-inch-size graphic novel and accompanying picture disc.

For those new to this dynamic duo, Fish is well known the world over for his striking images decking skateboards, canvases, shoes, toys, and clothing (he also co-owns the Unbelievers skateboard line). His is a world populated by skulls and turtles, guns and grenades, sailboats and Silly Pink Bunnies, inked with clean lines that could render the characters kinda cute if they weren't, say, about to ash on the carpet or wielding a weapon. Indie hip-hop hero/Def Jux staple Rock, on the other hand, is a tongue-twisting word slinger who once rapped, "How about some old-fashioned gone fishin'/Fishing is great but I hate hooking the bait," but he's in the tank now, standing as the lyrical master behind the story line of The Next Best Thing.

The 24-page book is a cleverly abstract tale of a giant skull of a man burdened with rivaling the genius of "the great pyramids and spray cheese in a can." Fish captures his character in stages of the brain-blocking/brainstorming cycle: doodling, kicking it on the couch, celebrating victory, and tripping on the "last chicken," while Rock raps the story line on the accompanying seven-inch. Together they turn common suffering into a cool conceptual package  one that's sure to become a quick collector's item.

It's debatable whether either artist is really hampered by a lack of ideas. Rock releases like a record per year, guests on recent work by El-P and Mr. Lif, and is at work on his next solo record, while Fish has a half-dozen art shows coming up in the next few months alone.

The second of Fish and Rock's artistic offspring is a short film called Fish Tales, which features Fish's mug and Rock's music. Fish describes the movie as being about "following your dreams," based on a fisherman seeking his personal Moby Dick. "He thinks it lives in the city, and no one believes him," Fish explains. "He finally finds it, catches it, and takes it on an adventure in San Francisco. And, coincidentally, the fisherman turns out to be a gifted skateboarder." (Look for the scene of Fish skating a slippery version of his namesake  which in real life caused a dislocated shoulder, if a recent Fecalface.cominterview is any indication.)

"The idea of solo releases can get a little stale if you don't mix it up from time to time," admits Rock, reflecting overall on the combined work with Fish. "It's nice to have another set of ears (or eyes) on whatever you're doing. It can get a little surreal making songs all day in a city where you don't know many people at all. You don't even know what [your music] sounds like even though you listen to it all day."

Doing his part in dropping knowledge on the next generation, Fish says he aims to express "how to not be a sheep; teach kids there are a lot of careers that don't involve suits and saying öYes sir' all day." As for his career heroes, Fish names a certain kung-fu master as his dream future collaborator. "Jackie Chan or some wacky martial artist would be cool," he says. "I would have him come to a show and kick the shit out of people." Adds Rock: "There's always more ideas; you just gotta find a way to dig them up."